What is Infertility Stress? How Can You Manage It?



Posted: Thursday, October 29, 2009

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Is it any wonder that infertility and stress are commonly referred to as a packaged deal?  The two often team up, each influencing and causing the other.  If you have spent a year or more trying to conceive with little to no success, you are likely making yourself quite anxious as the worry and doubt creeps into your mind.  You may also be living a very stressful lifestyle with the demands of work, relationships, and other concerns.  Could that stress be preventing your conception?  If you believe so, knowing this may be adding even more stress to your already stressed-out life.  All of these factors are interwoven and tangled in what is known as infertility stress, which affects both men and women.

Infertility is a very significant crisis that focuses on one of life's most deep-seated desires: to start a family.  Conception is one of the most stressful issues a couple has to deal with, so it is not unreasonable to have a very emotional response to problems.  It is common to experience a sense of isolation, as if nobody else can understand what you are going through. Feelings of inadequacy and even guilt are also common, especially for the person actually diagnosed with the infertility problem.  The inflammation of stress is often a direct result of these associated emotions, along with the simple concern that you may never be able to conceive.

This type of stress can directly affect your health, depending on the severity and how long it lasts.  Of course, it is impossible to avoid all stress in our world today. That noted, it is important to understand that relentless stress creates defensive measures within the body which work against conception, making a safe pregnancy harder to achieve.

There are two main types of stress.  First is acute stress, which is a short term condition brought on by a specific situation.  For example, it may occur when the body releases adrenalin and other substances to prepare for a fight or flight from danger.  The second is chronic stress, which lasts many days, weeks or months.  Once again, the body releases hormones and other chemicals to help the brain and body cope with a problem at hand.

These types of stress can have a number of negative effects on your fertility and general health, especially chronic or repeated events involving acute stress.  Excessive stress affects the female body by disrupting the communications between the brain and various other organs responsible for creating and controlling hormones, eggs and other essential aspects of conception.  There is a big chance for a hormone imbalance which can mess up the whole ovulation cycle and create other problems.

Stress can also create problems with the cardiovascular system in both men and women, which may not influence pregnancy directly but are not good for your general health in the long run.  It can be distracting and reduce sex drive, which may interfere with a couple's desire for intimate relations.  No intimacy means no baby!

Stress-induced infertility may also affect hormones in a man which impacts his sperm count.  The sperm health and mobility are put at risk as well.

When you consider all of this together, stress is obviously bad news for anyone trying to conceive.  Therefore, it is worth the time to stop and take a look at lifestyle choices, work stress and anxiety and the delay they may cause for conception.  Luckily, there are some effective treatments for reducing stress.

There are some natural treatments which include acupuncture and herbs.  These treatments relieve infertility stress by working with the autonomic and parasympathetic nervous systems to reduce muscle tension, increase the sense of relaxation, and relive mental agitation.  Meditation techniques like yoga and professional or group counseling can also help reduce stress levels.  Do not ignore the importance of stress on your ability to conceive, as it can be both a source and result of infertility.

Michael Key has written about a variety of technical and travel topics for three decades.  For more information on infertility stress look for his new book "Secrets of Infertility Relief" available only at InfertilityRelief.com.

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